Heya Lovelies,
I’m so sorry I’ve been slack with my posting lately. I just started a new job so its taken a while to adjust to this new (hectic) schedule of mine. But I’m working it out and will definitely be posting more regularly from now on! Pinky swear!
As some of you may know by now, I decided to stop chemically relaxing my hair about 4 months ago and I am now in the process of transitioning. When you first decide to go natural, the amount of information out there can be overwhelming. The natural hair world is full of a million different (and sometimes contradicting) do’s and don’ts not to mention all these random acronyms- it really took me a while to develop a regimen that was effective but most importantly feasible.
I’ve nominated Saturday mornings or Sunday afternoons as my “wash days” simply because I have the most time during the weekends to dedicate to my hair. I also try to stay away from doing my hair at night because I hate sleeping with wet hair and ideally I like my hair to air dry.
Here are my most commonly used products:
 |
| (L-R) Honey, Tresemme Naturals Nourishing Moisture Shampoo, Tresemme Naturals Nourishing Moisture Conditioner, Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil Replenishing Conditioner, Mizani True Textures Curl Balance Shampoo, Wide Tooth Comb, Denman Detangling Brush, Annie’s Hair Shears, Sectioning Clips, Homemade Oil Blend |
Detangling: I take my hair out of whatever style its in and gently detangle by misting my hair with water and combing through it gently with a wide tooth comb or Denman Brush from tip to root. This method results in the least amount of breakage for me. I know a lot of naturalistas recommend detangling in the shower with tonnes of conditioner but this just left so much hair on my comb and I’m still haunted by the sounds of my hair ripping out *shudders*. Another common method is finger detangling but I don’t have the patience for that. Just goes to show, you have to try different methods out and do what works for you.
Washing/Co-Washing: I wash my hair once a week because I like clean hair lol. I’ve heard so many objections about keeping natural oils and whatnot but I use the Mizani True Textures non-sulphate shampoo or I just use the Tresemme Naturals conditioner (co-washing) so my hair never feels stripped. And when I feel like I have a lot of build up I use the Tresemme Naturals Shampoo which is a low-sulphate shampoo. I wash my hair in sections using the following clips to keep them separate.
Deep-Conditioning (aka known as DC): Once I’ve rinsed my hair I make my own deep conditioner. It consists of two of my favourite conditioners (pictured above), a tablespoon of honey and my homemade oil blend (which consists of olive oil, coconut oil and Argan oil and tea tree oil.)
 |
| My Deep Conditioner |
The coolest thing I’ve bought this year is my Wing Hair Oven hair steamer. I just sit underneath it for half an hour with shower cap and my hair feels so soft and incredibly moisturised afterwards. I originally bought this because when I first started transitioning I had some serious issues with dryness. I read that steaming could help and was contemplating shipping a Huetiful over from the States but I just decided to go for this one. I got it from Oniru market for N15,000 ($100/£60) after ALOT of haggling! I love this it gets really really hot! But before I got my steamer I’d leave my DC in overnight with some cling film around my head to keep in the heat and I loved the effect this had on my hair as well.
 |
| My Wing Hair Oven Hair Steamer |
Final Rinse & Drying: I rinse my hair with cold water to close my cuticles which locks in the moisture. Then I dry my hair with a clean cotton t-shirt using a patting motion because the fibres on a towel can break your hair as can wringing it (you should never do that!). After I’ve absorbed as much water as I can with the t-shirt, I just let my hair air dry. When it’s about 70% dry I seal in the moisture with my whipped shea mix or my oil blend and allow to completely dry.
Styling and Low Manipulation: When I first started to notice my natural hair growing in I’d comb my hair almost every day- not good! I quickly adopted the ‘leave your hair alone’ school of thought. I try to keep my hair in a style that’ll last the entire week so I don’t have to touch it too much. I’ve been loving my DIY clip-ins for this.
 |
| Random Impulsive 5-inch “trim” AKA mini-chop! |
 |
| About 2 months post-relaxer |
 |
| 3 months post relaxer |
 |
| 3 months post relaxer- dry |
 |
| 4 months post with conditioner |
 |
| 4 months post with conditioner |
So this is what I do! I hope you find it all helpful.
Love,
Ifeyinwa
Great post Ify! Quick question…how do you have your hair during the week before your weekly wash & deep condition? Xx
Hiya Kiki! Thanks for your question, I actually keep my hair in cornrows and usually have my clip-ins for the whole week. I just moisturise my hair underneath my clip-ins and take the cornrows out on my wash day 🙂
i recently bought a wing hair oven (mine was 17k) and i noticed whenever I'm done sitting under it, i take off my shower cap expecting to feel warm hair, but my hair never is. is that normal, for the hair not to be warm? cos i coulda sworn the other hot bonnet steamer i used to use, used to make my hair feel warm.
Please, where can i get hair shears in lagos.